Yosemite National Park

Posted on 2017-10-20 by Zory

This October our first family California trip included camping at Yosemite National Park.

Since camping for us usually involves an RV, we made plans to rent one in San Francisco. We also sent a box to ourselves in advance with many of the things we would need while camping, instead of renting them from the RV rental place (sheets, pillows, blankets and kitchen pots and utensils). So, after a wonderful full day exploring San Francisco, we got up early, took the train and then an Über ride to the RV rental office.

Once we had our RV, we drove to a nearby FedEx office to pick up our box, made stops at Costco and Walmart for food and other necessities and then were finally on our way to Yosemite!

We ended up getting there at night, and started to feel a bit disappointed for not being able to see the park… until we hit a spot on the road where several cars were parked admiring El Capitan in the full moonlight. That was one incredible entrance to Yosemite which we realized we wouldn’t have been able to enjoy if we got there earlier.

The next morning we were up early, had a good breakfast in our camper and were ready to explore!

Our campsite offered this spectacular view:

Our first stop was, well, a bus stop. In the summer, Yosemite offers a free shuttle bus service. This is very convenient as it will get you to the main points of interest where you can then go off on hikes and explore the park without having to take a car everywhere and struggle to find parking. This is a busy park! So off we went to the visitor center to get some information on kid-friendly hikes and to get a game plan for the next couple of days. We also picked up a booklet so our little guy could work on getting his first Junior Ranger badge. Then we got a ride on the El Capitan shuttle to our hiking spot for the day. We got off at the El Capitan Picnic area and enjoyed incredible views of this impressive rock formation.

Our little camera allowed us to spot some climbers hard at work.

We were so happy to be out in nature, and felt so lucky to see all this beauty.

Our four year-old did incredibly well during this hike, we were actually surprised! It’s our goal as parents to teach him to love and respect nature, and some times this involves some tree-hugging…

He finally found one he could hug all the way…

After our day of hiking we went back to our campsite and got a fire going, some dinner ready and then it was time for s’mores!

The next morning we looked through our Junior Ranger booklet, worked on several activities based on what we saw and learned on our hike the previous day, and then we were ready to head back to the Visitor Center for a badge!

After that we were off on our next hike, this time to Mirror Lake, which was relatively close to our campground. Once we got there, our little guy was, as usual, drawn to the water and sand, so off came the shoes and socks (and, soon after, the pants as well) and he played to his heart’s content while we enjoyed spectacular views of Half Dome.

What a wonderful way to spend our second day in Yosemite! Then it was back to the campsite for dinner and a good night’s sleep.

The next day was our last in the park, so we took a final walk around the Visitor Center area before heading out.

We stopped at Tunnel View to see Yosemite Valley and found it very hazy; the effect of the wildfires was really felt here in the air quality as well. Still, it was beautiful and impressive, and a great way to end our visit to Yosemite.

A day in San Francisco

Posted on 2017-10-19 by Zory

This October we were lucky to go on a trip to California, our first as a family!

Our first stop: San Francisco. We had an entire day to explore the city and kicked it off with a cable cart ride.

We took the Powell-Hyde Line from Market Street to the top of Lombard Street. As we walked down the “crookedest street in the world” we had the opportunity to see a few cars driving down, one particular pick-up truck going a bit fast (must have been a local), which was quite entertaining.

We continued our stroll through the beautiful Russian Hill neighborhood towards Fisherman’s Wharf.

Once there, we walked around and explored a few sights, like the USS Pampanito.

We also visited Pier 39 and saw (and heard) the sea lions.

After that we had a quick snack at Boudin Bakery before heading out on a boat tour of San Francisco Bay. It was glorious to be out on the water and see the sights from that point of view. We went underneath the Golden Gate Bridge, which provided a great opportunity for a closer look, and also saw Alcatraz and San Francisco’s historic waterfront.

We then headed to what was probably the most entertaining part of our day: Musée Mécanique. This antique penny arcade was a real surprise to me, I must admit I didn’t expect to laugh so hard and have such fun! We thoroughly enjoyed trying out the different arcade machines, from old, crazy looking ones, to some that we played with as kids and were excited to introduce our son to. The number one choice for our little guy was, without a doubt, Atari’s Pole Position.

When we were ready for lunch we took a street car to the Ferry Building Marketplace, where we had a delicious meal at The Slanted Door. We explored the stores inside the market, spent more time that we thought we would particularly at The Gardener (so many cool gadgets!) and then grabbed an ice cream and sat outside to enjoy the chocolate and the sunshine.

We decided to end our day at a playground nearby at Sue Bierman Park, where our little guy played happily. Finally, we took a street car back to the Market Street area. It was a busy time of day, and as we squeezed ourselves into the street car, our kid described it best, saying: “there is almost no more room in here!”.

We walked back to our hotel amazed at how much we had done and seen in one day. San Francisco was a wonderful way to start our trip!

New York City with a 3 year-old (Part 3)

Posted on 2017-04-29 by Zory

What to do in New York on a rainy day? Head to a museum! After a breakfast of bagels and really good coffee at Irving Farm Coffee in Grand Central, we geared up to face the rain and were on our way to visit the American Museum of Natural History.

This museum, from dinosaurs to sea creatures, offered our little family hours of entertainment, knowledge and plain fun.

After our day at the museum we went in search of some much craved soup dumplings, which we found at The Bao in East Village. We had a delicious and pretty authentic (according to my husband, who has experienced the real deal in Asia) pork soup dumplings and scallion pancakes, while our little guy enjoyed some steamed rice and entertained himself by trying to eat with chopsticks (with a folded piece of paper and a rubber band, or in this case, a hair tie, you can fashion kid-friendly chopsticks).

With this food craving checked off our list, we headed back to our hotel on the subway, another great day in New York City.

The next day was our last day in New York. Since we had a few hours before heading to the airport, we decided to explore the Grand Central Market (just because we enjoy going to markets wherever we go) and then headed to the New York Public Library on 5th Avenue. Patience and Fortitude (the 2 famous lions, which are carved out of pink marble from Tennessee) welcomed us into this magnificent building. We love books and reading, so we really enjoyed exploring the library, from the Children’s Center with it’s Real Winnie-the-Pooh exhibit (the original stuffed toys that inspired the beloved story), to the impressive Rose Main Reading Room, and my husband’s favorite, the Map Division.

We ended our trip with a visit to the lobbies of the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building, absolutely stunning works of art and architecture from a very different era.

We had a grand time exploring some of the many options that New York City has to offer, it was our first visit as a family, and it certainly will not be the last!

New York City with a 3 year-old (Part 2)

Posted on 2017-04-29 by Zory

On our first family trip to New York City we wanted to experience some touristy things that would appeal both to my husband and I and to our 3 year-old son, so of course we decided to see the city from the top of one of the skyscrapers. We settled on Top of the Rock, mostly because we wanted to actually see the Empire State building, and also because it was a more budget-friendly option. So off we walked to 30 Rockefeller Plaza after breakfast and enjoyed a bird’s-eye view of New York.

After that we got on a bus headed straight to the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, where my two boys had the best time, as only boys with these cool toys can have. Our membership to Nashville’s Adventure Science Center got one of us in for free thanks to the ASTC Travel Passport Program, a great benefit to be aware of when planning your travels.

Time for lunch! We walked a few blocks to the Gotham West Market, where the little guy had some tasty pizza and the adults enjoyed ramen and pork belly buns. After lunch we took the subway to South Ferry station and got a free ride on the Staten Island Ferry, which allowed us a look at Lower Manhattan, the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.

Once we were back in Manhattan we made our way to the 9/11 Memorial. Our little guy is too young to understand the enormity of the tragedy that took place, but we wanted to pay our respects. I went through many emotions: I had a good cry as I remembered the lives lost, I was amazed at how much this area had changed since I was last in New York back in 2003, but most of all I couldn’t help but think about how short-term our memory is as I saw people taking selfies and chatting in the most animated way, when all I felt was respect and sorrow for what had taken place here in 2001.

As we headed back to the hotel we got to experience a significant delay in the subway, which resulted in our little guy falling asleep and staying asleep all the way to his bed. This was our chance to get some take-out we had been craving from Momosan Ramen & Sake, which was just around the corner from where we were staying. Ben had no idea who Masaharu Morimoto was, but as a fan of Iron Chef America, I was really looking forward to trying the food prepared at his restaurant, and I was not disappointed, best take out ever!

For more of our trip to New York with a 3 year-old click here

New York City with a 3 year-old (Part 1)

Posted on 2017-04-28 by Zory

This Spring we decided to take a family trip to New York. My husband, 3 year-old son and I flew into La Guardia airport and took a bus ride to Grand Central Station (which was less of a hassle than trying to take the bus and train). We walked a couple of blocks to our hotel, checked in and proceeded to head out in search of a late lunch and some exploring. We found a small Thai place near the hotel which was tasty, decently priced and kid-friendly, then walked towards Broadway. There, in the Garment District’s pedestrian plazas (between 36th and 41st streets) we encountered “A Fancy Animal Carnival“, a great display of eleven large sculptures created by artist Hung Yin. Our son loved looking at all of these and recognizing the different animals, it was a fun and colorful welcome to New York.

We continued our walk up to Times Square to give our little guy the opportunity to see all the lights, screens and people. Thankfully we brought a pair of kid’s head-cancelling headphones for him and with that he was happy to look around without having to cover his ears the entire time. Our walk took us to the Rockefeller Center, where we enjoyed pointing out all the flags and going into the Lego store to look around.

Then we headed to Fifth Avenue to walk by the library and see the lions before it got too dark. We ended up in Grand Central Station‘s Main Concourse, where we pointed out the constellations on the ceiling and admired the four-faced brass clock and the old ticket booths. After a full day of traveling and exploring we were ready to head back to our hotel, but not before picking up a slice of pizza for dinner.

Our second day was a beautiful, sunny Sunday, so we decided to spend the day outdoors. First we rode the subway to the Meatpacking District to walk along the High Line. Needless to say, for a 3 year-old boy, the subway (or train, as he called it) was one of the highlights of our trip and he wanted to ride it everyday.

The High Line was great, we loved walking in a place where we didn’t have to worry about cars, and our little guy had fun climbing on every bench he encountered. It was a great stroll where we just relaxed and enjoyed the contrasts that make up this incredible city.

After our walk we got on the subway and made our way to Columbus Circle, where we picked up some sandwiches and headed into Central Park for a picnic lunch. We spent the rest of our day in this glorious park, letting our son play at the Heckscher Playground, climb the Umpire Rock with dad, and play soccer with a mini inflatable ball we brought along. We also rented a boat at the Loeb Boathouse and spent a fun hour rowing and people watching in Central Park Lake.

Spring in New York city is absolutely stunning! I was so happy to see the cherry blossom trees in full bloom, it reminded me of beautiful Victoria, B.C.

We ended our day having dinner at Shake Shack, before heading back to the hotel. Our little guy fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow!